Antipsychotic Polypharmacy May Reduce Long-Term Rehospitalization Risk, Study FindsIn this study on the long-term use of antipsychotic polypharmacy in schizophrenia, researchers examined seven monotherapies and 22 antipsychotic combinations, excluding polypharmacy periods shorter than 90 days.Researchers analyzed data on all Finnish patients with schizophrenia treated in an inpatient setting from 1972 to 2014, and the 62,250 patients were followed for a median of 14 years, with researchers pulling data on their dispensation of antipsychotic medication. The primary outcomes studied were the number of psychiatric rehospitalizations, with hospitalizations due to physical illnesses and deaths serving as seco...Source: Psychiatr News - February 21, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: antipsychotics aripiprazole clozapine JAMA Psychiatry Jari Tiihonen monotherapy polypharmacy quetiapine rehospitalization schizophrenia Source Type: research

Substance Use Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder Common in Patients With Eating DisordersMore than half of patients with eating disorders have at least one other psychiatric condition such as substance use disorder (SUD) or borderline personality disorder, suggests astudy in theInternational Journal of Eating Disorders. In addition, symptoms of eating disorders are more severe in those who have either SUD or borderline personality disorder.Thomas J. Weigel, M.D., of McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass., and colleagues analyzed the records of 479 patients who were in a residential treatment program for an eating disorder for at least 30 days between mid-November 2010 and mid-September 2014. Patients completed surv...Source: Psychiatr News - February 19, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: borderline personality disorder eating disorder International Journal of Eating Disorders residential treatment program substance use disorder Thomas Weigel Source Type: research

Tamoxifen May Reduce Mania in Patients With Bipolar Disorder But Questions RemainTamoxifen, a medication commonly used to treat breast cancer, appears to hold some promise as a treatment for mania, according to asystematic review and meta-analysisappearing in theJournal of Psychopharmacology.Tamoxifen has been proposed as a treatment for bipolar disorder because it acts on cells in a way similar to lithium and valproate —both of which are effective medications for bipolar disorder. However, the current review found most studies focused on the effect of tamoxifen on mania, not on bipolar disorder, and its effects on depression are unknown.“Tamoxifen appears to be a promising potential treatm...Source: Psychiatr News - February 15, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: bipolar disorder depression Journal of Psychopharmacology literature search mania meta-analysis systematic review tamoxifen Source Type: research

Teen Marijuana Users Face Higher Risk of Adult Depression, Suicidality, Meta-Analysis SuggestsTeenagers who use cannabis are at a significantly higher risk of developing major depression and suicidality as young adults, including a three-times greater risk of attempting suicide, according to ameta-analysis published yesterday inJAMA Psychiatry.“Cannabis is the mostly commonly used drug of abuse by adolescents in the world,” wrote Gabriella Gobbi, M.D., Ph.D., of McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and colleagues. The authors systematically selected studies that assessed participants’ cannabis use when they were younger than 18 ye ars old; adjusted for depression, anxiety, and/or suicidality at ...Source: Psychiatr News - February 14, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescence anxiety cannabis depression Gabriella Gobbi JAMA Psychiatry marijuana meta-analysis suicidality suicide attempts suicide ideation Source Type: research

FDA Advisory Panel Gives Nod to Esketamine Nasal Spray, Paving Way for FDA ApprovalAn independent advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesdayendorsed the esketamine nasal spray Spravato for the treatment of adults with treatment-resistant depression. The rapid-acting antidepressant was developed by the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson& Johnson. While the FDA is not required to follow the recommendation of the panel, the agency does take its advice into consideration.In a 14-2 vote with one abstention, the Psychopharmacologic Drug Advisory Committee and Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee concluded the benefits of esketamine outweigh the risks.The comm...Source: Psychiatr News - February 13, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: esketamine FDA Janssen Johnson & NMDA Psychopharmacologic Drug Advisory Committee and Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee REMS Spravato treatment-resistant depression Source Type: research

APA Announces Results of 2019 ElectionAPA ’s Committee of Tellers has approved the following results of APA’s 2019 national election. Please note that these results are considered public but not official until approved by the Board of Trustees at its meeting on March 9 and 10 in Washington, D.C.President-ElectJeffrey Geller, M.D., M.P.H.SecretarySandra DeJong, M.D., M.Sc.Minority/Underrepresented TrusteeRahn Kennedy Bailey, M.D.Area 3 TrusteeKenneth Certa, M.D.Area 6 TrusteeMelinda Young, M.D.Resident-Fellow Member Trustee-ElectMichael Mensah, M.D., M.P.H.Complete results of the election will be reported in the March 1 issue of Psychiatric New...Source: Psychiatr News - February 12, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: APA's 2019 election Jeffrey Geller Kenneth Certa Melinda Young Michael Mensah Rahn Kennedy Bailey Sandra DeJong Source Type: research

Text Messaging May Enhance Postpartum Depression ScreeningUsing text messages to ask questions and educate women with a new baby about postpartum depression is a practical and feasible approach to improve postpartum depression screening, reports astudy inPsychiatric Services in Advance.“This cost-effective, innovative technology has excellent potential to be used in mental health care for universal screening purposes and as a first step in the pathway to treatment,” wrote Andrea Lawson, Ph.D., of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto and colleagues.The researchers recruited 937 new mothers to participate in a 12-week long assessment of a text-based screening. Every two week...Source: Psychiatr News - February 11, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: Andrea Lawson depression Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale postpartum depression Psychiatric Services screening tools text messages women Source Type: research

Chronic Sinusitis Linked to Depression, Anxiety, Study FindsPeople who have chronic rhinosinusitis (commonly referred to as chronic sinusitis and characterized by inflammation of nasal passages lasting more than 12 weeks) may be more likely to have depression and anxiety, according to astudy published yesterday inJAMA Otolaryngology –Head& Neck Surgery.Jong-Yeup Kim, M.D., Ph.D., of Hallym University College of Medicine, in South Korea and colleagues analyzed the health insurance records of 16,244 South Korean patients who received inpatient and outpatient care for chronic rhinosinusitis from January 2002 through December 2004. Each patient was tracked until December 31, ...Source: Psychiatr News - February 8, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: anxiety depression Edward D. McCoul JAMA Otolaryngology –Head & Neck Surgery Jong-Yeup Kim rhinosinusitis Source Type: research

Intervention for Suicidal Adolescents May Reduce Long-Term MortalitySuicidal adolescents who took part in a program for which they chose several “caring adults” who stayed in regular contact with them and were supportive of their treatment were nearly seven times less likely to die during the follow-up of 11 years to 14 years, according to astudy published Wednesday inJAMA Psychiatry.The intervention is believed to be among the first aimed at suicidal adolescents that has shown a reduction in mortality, according to lead author Cheryl A. King, Ph.D., of the University of Michigan and colleagues.The study was a secondary analysis of atrial involving more than 400 adolescents, ag...Source: Psychiatr News - February 7, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescents Cheryl A. King depression suicidality suicide teens Youth-Nominated Support Team YST Source Type: research

Children of Dads With Psychological Distress May Be More Likely to Show Behavioral ProblemsChildren whose fathers are experiencing greater feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, and depression may be more likely to display behavioral problems compared with children whose fathers are experiencing fewer of these symptoms, according to astudy in theJournal of the American Academy of Child& Adolescent Psychiatry.“Our study … clearly suggests that interventions to prevent and treat psychological distress in fathers may have much benefit for their children,” wrote Eirini Flouri, Ph.D., of the University College London. “The first step in doing that is increasing awareness of the role tha...Source: Psychiatr News - February 6, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: children conduct problems Eirini Flouri emotional problems fathers hyperactivity Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Millennium Cohort Study Source Type: research

Hyperactive Brain Cells May Explain Why Some Patients Don ’t Respond to SSRIsNot everyone with depression responds to treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and now areport inMolecular Psychiatry provides a possible explanation: brain cells in people who do not respond to SSRIs may become hyperactive in the presence of serotonin in a way that the brain cells of people who respond to SSRIs do not.“This is a promising step toward understanding why some patients don’t respond to SSRIs and letting us better personalize treatments for depression,” said senior author Rusty Gage, M.S., Ph.D., of the Salk Institute in astatement.SSRIs acutely increase serotonin le...Source: Psychiatr News - February 5, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: hyperactivity Molecular Psychiatry neurons non-responders to antidepressant treatment personalized treatment Ph.D. Rusty Gage Salk Institute SSRIs Source Type: research

Physical Problems Exacerbate Severity of Post-Concussive Depression in Former NFL PlayersA history of football-related concussions is more likely to lead to depression in former NFL players who also have physical problems such as body pain, headaches, and dizziness, reports astudy published in theJournal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences.“These results suggest that medical professionals should be especially attentive to a retired athlete’s comorbid medical history and physically related conditions,” wrote Benjamin Brett, Ph.D., of the Vanderbilt Sports Concussion Center and colleagues. “If a retired athlete reports an extens ive history of SRC [sport-related concussion] and ...Source: Psychiatr News - February 4, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: BDI-II Benjamin Brett concussion depression headaches Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences NFL pain PHQ-15 professional football somatic symptoms Source Type: research

Suicide Risk Factors May Be Overlooked in Older Veterans, Study SuggestsGeneral health professionals may be missing key opportunities to assess suicidal risk and prevent suicide attempts in veterans aged 50 or older. Astudy in theAmerican Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry found that veterans aged 50 and older who later attempted suicide were less likely to be asked about impulsivity and firearms access during their last visit prior to the attempt than younger veterans who later attempted suicide. The older veterans were also less likely to receive mental health referrals than their younger peers.Kelsey Simons, Ph.D., L.M.S.W., of the Veterans Administration VISN 2 Center of Excellence for Suicid...Source: Psychiatr News - January 31, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry collaborative care Kelsey Simons older adults suicide VA veterans Source Type: research

Initiating Aripiprazole Similar to Other Antipsychotics When It Comes to Risk of Treatment Failure, Study SuggestsPatients who begin taking the antipsychotic aripiprazole after being treated with other antipsychotics do not appear to be at greater risk of hospitalization, self-harm, or suicide than those initiating other antipsychotics after previous antipsychotic exposure, according to astudy reported today inJAMA Psychiatry.Aripiprazole is an effective antipsychotic medication that is often used because it has fewer side effects compared with other antipsychotic medications, explained Fran çois Montastruc, M.D., Ph.D., of the Jewish General Hospital in Quebec and colleagues. Recently, however, there have been reports that in ...Source: Psychiatr News - January 30, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: aripiprazole hospitalization JAMA Psychiatry psychiatric treatment failure self-harm suicide Source Type: research

Potent Dopamine D2 Antagonists Found to Block Reward-Enhancing Effects of Nicotine in Smokers With SchizophreniaMany people with schizophrenia smoke cigarettes —a behavior that has been linked to worse symptoms and early mortality. Astudy inSchizophrenia Bulletinpoints to why some patients with schizophrenia who take certain antipsychotics may smoke more than patients with schizophrenia who take other antipsychotics. Chlorpromazine, fluphenazine, haloperidol, olanzapine, paliperidone, and risperidone may reduce some of the positive feelings that smokers associate with nicotine, the study suggests.Previous studies have found that patients with schizophrenia who take first-generation antipsychotics, many of which block dopamine ...Source: Psychiatr News - January 29, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: Alexis E. Whitton antipsychotics cigarettes dopamine D2 receptors Schizophrenia Bulletin smoking Source Type: research

Slower Development of Young Children May Be Linked to Excess Screen TimeChildren aged 2 and 3 years who spend a greater amount of time watching TV or playing on a smartphone or computer than their peers may be less likely to meet developmental milestones by age 5, suggests astudy published today inJAMA Pediatrics.“To our knowledge, the present study is the first to provide evidence of a directional association between screen time and poor performance on development screening tests among very young children,” wrote Sheri Madigan, Ph.D., of the University of Calgary and colleagues. “As technology use is entrenched in the modern-day lives of individuals, understanding the direct...Source: Psychiatr News - January 28, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ASQ-3 child and adolescent psychiatry development media screen time Sheri Madigan television toddler Source Type: research

Buprenorphine/Naloxone May Be More Effective Than SSRIs for Patients With PTSDBuprenorphine/naloxone may help decrease symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) more than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or opioids alone, according to astudy published in theAmerican Journal on Addictions.Elizabeth P. Lake, Pharm.D., B.C.P.P., of the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System in North Little Rock, Ark., and colleagues conducted a retrospective chart review of 165 patients with PTSD who were treated at the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center between June 1, 2010, and June 30, 2016. The researchers divided the patients into three groups: those taking buprenorphine/...Source: Psychiatr News - January 25, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: buprenorphine Elizabeth Lake naloxone posttraumatic stress disorder PTSD selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor SSRI Source Type: research

APA Calls for Protection of Transgender Rights After Supreme Court Allows Military Service BanAPA has denounced a Supreme Court decision handed down earlier this week that gave a green light to the U.S. military to restrict service by individuals who are transgender.A sharply divided high court handed the Trump administration the victory for its policy banning transgender military service by a vote of 5-4, without discussing the merits of the case. In response, APA issued astatement calling for the protection of transgender individuals ’ civil rights and expressing great disappointment in the decision to lift the injunctions on the transgender service ban imposed by a lower courts.After President Donald Trump...Source: Psychiatr News - January 24, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: Altha Stewart gender dysphoria military ban Obama Administration Saul Levin Supreme Court transgender Trump administration Source Type: research

Olanzapine May Help Adults With Anorexia Gain WeightMany patients who take the antipsychotic olanzapine for psychiatric disorders are known to experience significant weight gain. Astudy in AJP in Advance now suggests that olanzapine may be able to help adults with anorexia gain some weight, but it does not appear to reduce psychological symptoms associated with the disorder.“We found a weight gain effect associated with olanzapine, but it was more modest than the significant, usually undesirable, weight gain seen when olanzapine is used to treat other disorders,” Evelyn Attia, M.D., of Columbia University Irving Medical Center and colleagues wrote. The find...Source: Psychiatr News - January 23, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ajp in advance anorexia antipsychotic Evelyn Attia olanzapine weight gain Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale Source Type: research

Guanfacine May Enhance Effects of Social, Cognitive Therapy for Patients With Schizotypal Personality DisorderGuanfacine, a medication believed to help enhance cognitive function, appears to improve reasoning and problem solving among patients with schizotypal personality disorder when combined with cognitive and social skills training, according to areport inAJP in Advance.Schizotypal personality disorder is characterized by a pattern of social and interpersonal deficits including eccentric behavior and unusual thoughts. Cognition, the ability to think and reason, has been shown to be highly correlated with functional outcome in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, including schizotypal personality disorder.“[T]h...Source: Psychiatr News - January 22, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: cognition cognitive and social skills training guanfacine reasoning and problem solving schizotypal personality disorder Source Type: research

Calls, Texts May Help Patients With Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder Stick to Their MedicationsPhone calls and texts may help adults with severe mental illness maintain their medication regimens, according to astudy published Thursday inPsychiatric Services in Advance.In a clinical trial of 120 patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, Lara N. Schulze of the University of Greifswald in Germany and colleagues randomly assigned participants to the intervention or control group. Both groups received care as usual, defined as basic medical care that included occasional visits to physicians. The intervention group also received regular telephone calls every other week for six months.During the calls, trained nurse...Source: Psychiatr News - January 18, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: bipolar disorder Lara N. Schulze medication adherence Psychiatric Services in Advance schizophrenia trained nurses Source Type: research

Punitive Discipline May Work in Short Term but Could Cause Long-Term Emotional DamageThis study demonstrates that for those mother-child dyads in which discipline is frequent, the type of approach used appears important with distinct later childhood mental health outcome,” Rajyaguru and colleagues wrote. “[I]f mothers adopted more withdrawal and less active approaches, then l ater emotional and behavioral problems might be decreased.”(Image: iStock/Giselleflissak)FollowPsychiatric News on Twitter!For previous news alerts,click here. (Source: Psychiatr News)Source: Psychiatr News - January 17, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: behavioral problems discipline emotional problems Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry mood parenting Pryia Rajyaguru UK Millennium Cohort Study Source Type: research

Individuals With a Mental Disorder at Increased Risk for Subsequent DiagnosesAbout 30% of men and 40% of women diagnosed with depression before age 20 will be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder within five years, and 40% of men and 50% of women will be diagnosed within 15 years, reports astudy published today in JAMA Psychiatry. This strong association between depression and later anxiety was just one of many comorbidities identified in this study —one of the largest and most detailed examinations of comorbidity of mental disorders to date.“To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide a comprehensive set of age- and sex-specific estimates of absolute risks associated with comorb...Source: Psychiatr News - January 16, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: absolute risk anxiety Danish registers depression diagnosis health registry psychiatric comorbidity risk factors Source Type: research

Parents Often Unaware of Adolescents ’ Suicidal Ideation, Study ShowsParents are often unaware that their adolescent children are thinking about suicide or death, according to areport in the journalPediatrics. Moreover, when parents do believe their children are having such thoughts, the children often deny them.Given these findings, it is apparent that brief screens used at routine checkups are not detecting many adolescents at risk for suicide, wrote Jason D. Jones, Ph.D., of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Children ’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “This highlights the urgent need for continued training of pediatric primary care physicians in the evaluation an...Source: Psychiatr News - January 15, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescent risk for suicide parent child agreement about risk for suicide pediatrics Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort Source Type: research

Parents Often Unaware of Adolscents ’ Suicidal Ideation, Study ShowsParents are often unaware that their adolescent children are thinking about suicide or death, according to areport in the journalPediatrics. Moreover, when parents do believe their children are having such thoughts, the children often deny them.Given these findings, it is apparent that brief screens used at routine checkups are not detecting many adolescents at risk for suicide, wrote Jason D. Jones, Ph.D., of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Children ’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “This highlights the urgent need for continued training of pediatric primary care physicians in the evaluation an...Source: Psychiatr News - January 15, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescent risk for suicide parent child agreement about risk for suicide pediatrics Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort Source Type: research

Study Suggests Actions to Improve Compliance With Depression TreatmentTreatment guideline recommendations are not being followed for a large proportion of patients with major depressive disorder, suggests astudy published today inPsychiatric Services in Advance. The authors suggest that improvement in multiple areas —such as treatment practices and health insurance coverage—are needed.“Our research found that most patients were not receiving antidepressants or psychotherapy after the first five months following their initial diagnosis of major depressive disorder,” wrote Fraser W. Gaspar, Ph.D., M.P.H., of MDGuidelines, a health care consulting organization, and colle...Source: Psychiatr News - January 11, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: antidepressants Fraser Gaspar IBM MarketScan Psychiatric Services in Advance psychotherapy Source Type: research

Some Common Medications Found to Help People With Serious Mental IllnessCommon medications used to fight cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes may be useful in lowering risk of self-harm and psychiatric hospitalization for people with a serious mental illness (SMI) such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or nonaffective psychosis, according to astudy published yesterday inJAMA Psychiatry.In the study, Joseph F. Hayes, Ph.D., of University College London and an international team of colleagues analyzed data from the health records of 142,691 Swedish patients aged 15 and older who had an SMI and were treated with psychiatric medication from October 2005 through December 2016. The data ...Source: Psychiatr News - January 10, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: bipolar disorder JAMA Psychiatry Joseph Hayes L-type calcium channel blockers medications Metformin nonaffective psychosis psychiatric hospitalization schizophrenia self-harm statins Source Type: research

FDA Approves Marketing of Eye-Tracking Test for Detecting ConcussionThe Food and Drug Administration hascleared for marketing an eye-tracking test that can help determine whether a patient has experienced a concussion.The device, known as EyeBOX, uses a camera to measure a patient ’s eye movements in response to a stimulus. Such information can help physicians and other health care professionals better assess the extent of a patient’s brain injury.“Other diagnostics require a baseline test, typically generated at the beginning of a sport season, pre-injury, [which] is compared to subsequent test results at the time of a suspected concussion. In many situations, a baseline...Source: Psychiatr News - January 9, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: brain injury concussion eye-tracking test EyeBOX FDA marketing Oculogica Source Type: research

Cancer Patients at Increased Risk for Suicide Within a Year After DiagnosisPatients with cancer are at an increased risk of suicide in the first year after diagnosis compared with the general population,according to areport in the journalCancer. The risk differs by type of cancer, with pancreatic and lung cancer having the highest risk.“After the diagnosis, it is important that health care providers be vigilant in screening for suicide and ensuring that patients have access to social and emotional support,” wrote Anas M. Saad, M.D., of Ain Shams University, Cairo, and colleagues.Using data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program, the researchers calculated ...Source: Psychiatr News - January 8, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: cancer cancer diagnosis Journal Cancer quality of life social support suicide suicide risk after diagnosis Source Type: research

Some Levels of Alzheimer ’s Biomarkers May Differ Between African Americans, WhitesAfrican-American individuals on average have lower levels of the tau protein compared with white individuals, reports astudy published today inJAMA Neurology. Tau, along with amyloid beta, are two proteins strongly associated with Alzheimer ’s disease (AD) and considered key biomarkers for diagnosing AD.“To our knowledge, our study is the first to examine racial differences in molecular biomarkers of AD in which the cohort contributed data for both amyloid concentrations as seen on PET scan and CSF [cerebrospinal fluid] concentrations of [amyloid and tau],” wrote lead author John C. Morris, M.D ., of the ...Source: Psychiatr News - January 7, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: African Americans Alzheimer's disease amyloid beta APOE ε4 biomarkers cerebrospinal fluid. John C. Morris JAMA Neurology Lisa Barnes minorities race tau Source Type: research

Perinatal and Postpartum Distress Increases Risk for Developmental DelaysChildren born to mothers who have persistent anxiety from late pregnancy to three years postpartum have an increased risk of delays in communication and personal-social development, according to astudy in theJournal of Affective Disorders. The findings suggest the need for increased efforts to identify mothers with perinatal and postpartum distress in an effort to mitigate the associated developmental delays.Muhammad Kashif Mughal, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., of the University of Calgary and colleagues evaluated data from the three-year follow-up to the All Our Families (AOF) study, an ongoing study of mothers and children in Calgary...Source: Psychiatr News - January 4, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Source Type: research

Ketamine Found Effective for Patients With Anxious Treatment-Resistant DepressionPatients with anxious depression —major depressive disorder (MDD) with high levels of anxiety—are known to have a poorer response to commonly used antidepressants than those with MDD. Asmall study published inDepression& Anxietynow suggests intravenous (IV) ketamine may be able to reduce symptoms in patients with anxious depression. The study found patients with and without anxious depression experienced similar symptom improvements within 24 hours of receiving a ketamine infusion.Naji C. Salloum, M.D., of Harvard Medical School and colleagues compared the effectiveness of IV ketamine to that of midazolam (...Source: Psychiatr News - January 3, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: anxious depression & Anxiety Hamilton Depression Rating Scale Anxiety/Somatization ketamine midazolam Naji C. Salloum treatment-resistant depression Source Type: research

Seniors With Depression May Be at Heightened Risk of Hip Fracture Before Starting AntidepressantsDespite several observational studies demonstrating that older patients taking antidepressants are at a higher risk of falls and fractures, it has remained unclear whether the use of the medication causes the increased risk. Astudy published today inJAMA Psychiatry suggests that older adults may be at higher risk of hip fracture even before they start taking antidepressants.While the findings raise questions about the association between antidepressant drug use and hip fracture, study authors Jon Br ännström, M.D., of Umeå University in Sweden and colleagues cautioned that doctors should continue to limit t...Source: Psychiatr News - January 2, 2019 Category: Psychiatry Tags: amitriptyline Andrea Iaboni antidepressants citalopram Donovan T. Maust hip fracture JAMA Psychiatry Jon Br ännström mirtazapine older adults Source Type: research

AJP Editors Highlight Favorite Articles of 2018Improving outcomes in patients with depression and posttraumatic stress disorder, drug development, and psychotherapy were among the topics of the seven articlesselected as favorites of 2018 by the editors of theAmerican Journal of Psychiatry. The articles are listed below in the order they appeared in the print issue of the Journal:Adjunctive Bright Light Therapy for Bipolar Depression: A Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Trial: Dorothy Sit, M.D., and colleagues randomly assigned adults with bipolar I or II disorder with symptoms of major depression who were on stable concomitant medications to either a 7,000-lux...Source: Psychiatr News - December 31, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: aging American Journal of Psychiatry bipolar disorder bright light therapy depression methylation propranolol psychotherapy PTSD suicide TNF- α Source Type: research

FDA Downgrades Risk Category for Certain Uses of ECTThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued afinal order on Wednesday to downgrade the risk category for certain uses of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).This was a change for which APA had strongly advocated, saying it could greatly expand access to safe, effective treatment for individuals with serious and persistent psychiatric disorders.First, the FDA ’s final order reclassified ECT devices from Class III (higher risk) to Class II (moderate risk) for the treatment of catatonia or a severe major depressive episode associated with major depressive or bipolar disorder. The order applies to ECT use in patients who a...Source: Psychiatr News - December 28, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: APA Class II Class III ECT electroconvulsive therapy FDA Federal Register major depressive episode reclassification treatment-resistant depression Source Type: research

Daughters of Men With Postnatal Depression May Be at Higher Risk for Depression in AdolescenceGirls whose dads experienced depression shortly after their birth are more likely to develop depression by age 18, according to astudy published Wednesday inJAMA Psychiatry.This cohort study of 3,176 father-offspring pairs in Southwest England explored the association of depression symptoms in fathers eight weeks after the birth of their infant and depression symptoms in the offspring 18 years later. The researchers also examined potential environmental pathways for depression risk. After adjusting for the age and education level of the father, they found that maternal depression had the greatest influence on depression ri...Source: Psychiatr News - December 27, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ALSPAC depression JAMA Psychiatry Leticia Gutierrez-Galve maternal depression paternal depression Source Type: research

Relatives of People With Depression Perform Worse on Cognitive TestsFirst-degree relatives of people with major depressive disorder (MDD) perform slightly worse on cognitive tests compared with individuals with no family history of major mental illness, reports ameta-analysis published today inJAMA Psychiatry. According to the study authors, the findings support the idea that cognitive difficulties may be a risk factor for MDD.Such information could help guide early intervention in individuals considered to be at high familial risk for developing MDD, Lynn MacKenzie, M.A., of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and colleagues wrote.MacKenzie and colleagues compiled data from 54 i...Source: Psychiatr News - December 26, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: cognition depression early intervention JAMA Psychiatry Lynn MacKenzie MDD relatives Source Type: research

Older Adults at Increased Risk of Depression, Anxiety After Rehab EndsOlder adults who receive rehabilitation services are at higher risk for depressive and anxiety symptoms up to a year after rehabilitative services are discontinued compared with those who do not receive rehabilitative services, according to astudy in theAmerican Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.“As mental illness is associated with considerable morbidity and may affect rehabilitation outcomes, additional efforts to identify and treat depression and anxiety in these older adults may be warranted,” wrote Adam Simning, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den tistry and colleagues.The ...Source: Psychiatr News - December 21, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: Adam Simning American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry anxiety depression GAD-2 National Health and Aging Trends Study PHQ-2 rehabilitation Source Type: research

Rising U.S. Youth Firearm, Motor Vehicle Crash Deaths Called ‘Shameful’There was a 28% increase in the rate of firearm deaths among U.S. children between 2013 and 2016, according to areport published today in theNew England Journal of Medicine.In all, there were more than 20,000 deaths among children and adolescents in the United States in 2016, and the majority —60%—resulted from injury-related causes. Motor vehicle crashes were the leading cause of death for children and adolescents, representing 20% of all deaths, followed by firearm-related injuries (15%), and malignant neoplasm, or cancer (9%).Declines in deaths from infectious disease or cancer have been eclipsed by increase...Source: Psychiatr News - December 20, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescents CDC WONDER children Edward W. Campion firearm deaths homicide New England Journal of Medicine Rebecca Cunningham suicide Source Type: research

Peer Troubles Partially Explain Link Between Maternal Depression and Adolescent ProblemsThis study also demonstrated that teens who are teased, harassed, and/or bullied in middle childhood are especially vulnerable.”[T]he well-being of adolescents exposed to early maternal depression was associated more with their experience of victimization than with poor quality of parent-child relationships or to poor quality of relationships with friends in middle childhood,” wrote Sylvana Côté, Ph.D., of the Univers ity of Montreal and colleagues.C ôté and colleagues analyzed a subset of data from the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development, which tracked and periodically asse...Source: Psychiatr News - December 19, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: adolescence bullying child depression generalized anxiety disorder maternal depression peer victimization social phobia Source Type: research

Benzodiazepine Use May Be Higher Among U.S. Adults Than Previously EstimatedOver 30 million U.S. adults took benzodiazepines in the past year, including 5.3 million who misused the medication, suggests astudy published Monday inPsychiatric Services in Advance.The findings, which were based on an analysis of data collected as part of a national survey in 2015 and 2016, suggest that annual benzodiazepine use among U.S. adults may be more than double estimates based on data collected in 2013 and 2014, but the differences may be due partly by different survey methodologies, the authors wrote. The findings also point to those most likely to take the medication without a prescription or in greater amoun...Source: Psychiatr News - December 18, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: anxiety benzodiazepines Donovan Maust insomnia insurance coverage misuse prescription Psychiatric Services in Advance Source Type: research

Ruling ACA Unconstitutional Could Have Devastating Effects on Patients, APA WarnsAPA is calling for vigorous appeal of Friday ’sdecision by a Texas court that the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional.“This ruling has an unconscionable result,” APA President Altha Stewart, M.D., said in apress statement. “Should this ruling stand, millions of our patients will lose their health care. We cannot afford to go back to the days when Americans were denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions or when insurance companies would not cover mental health and substance use disorders.”U.S. District Court Judge Reed O ’Connor in Texas ruled that since Congress rep...Source: Psychiatr News - December 17, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ACA Affordable Care Act Altha Stewart health care coverage individual mandate Judge Reed O'Conner Saul Levin U.S. Supreme Court unconstitutional Source Type: research

Abnormal Childhood BMI May Point to Increased Risk of Eating DisorderYoung children whose BMIs are significantly lower or higher than average may be at increased risk of developing an eating disorder in adolescence, suggests astudy published in theJournal of the American Academy of Child& Adolescent Psychiatry.“Observing children whose BMI trajectories persistently and significantly deviate from age norms for signs and symptoms of ED [eating disorder] could assist in identification of high-risk individuals,” wrote Zeynep Yilmaz, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and colleagues.The researchers analyzed a subset of data from the Avon Longitudinal Study ...Source: Psychiatr News - December 14, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ALSPAC anorexia nervosa binge-eating disorder BMI bulimia nervosa children eating disorders Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry purge disorder Zeynep Yilmaz Source Type: research

Study Identifies Some Predictors of Bipolar Disorder in At-Risk YouthAmong offspring of individuals with bipolar disorder, 25% were diagnosed with the disorder, according to astudy published in AJP in Advance. The study found that childhood sleep and anxiety disorders may be important predictors of the illness.Participants with childhood anxiety disorders or sleep disorders were nearly twice as likely to develop mood disorder, according to Anne Duffy, M.D., a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Queen ’s University in Canada, and colleagues. Children with depressive or manic symptoms were 2.7 times more likely and 2.3 times more likely, respectively, to develop mood disorder.T...Source: Psychiatr News - December 13, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ajp in advance Anne Duffy anxiety bipolar disorder children manic symptoms predictors sleep disorders Source Type: research

Youth Prescribed High Doses of Antipsychotics Off Label May Be at Heightened Risk of Death, Study FindsMedicaid-enrolled youth aged 5 to 24 years who begin taking high doses of antipsychotics for psychiatric disorders other than psychosis appear to be at an increased risk of death compared with those taking other psychiatric medications, reports astudy published today inJAMA Psychiatry. The findings serve as a reminder of the importance of careful prescribing and monitoring of young patients on antipsychotics, according to the study authors.Wayne R. Ray, Ph.D., of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort study of youth aged 5 to 24 years who were enrolled in Medicaid in Tennes...Source: Psychiatr News - December 12, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ADHD antipsychotics Barbara Geller children conduct disorder David Fassler death impulsivity JAMA Psychiatry off label Wayne Ray young adults Source Type: research

FDA Clears App to Help Retain Patients in Treatment for Opioid Use DisorderThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterdaycleared for marketing a prescription smartphone application to help individuals being treated for opioid use disorder stay in treatment and maintain their motivation to recover.Modeled on asimilar app cleared by the FDA last year for patients with alcohol, cocaine, marijuana, and stimulant substance use disorders, reSET-O is specifically tailored for patients with opioid use disorder. The reSET-O app is intended for use in combination with outpatient psychosocial treatment that also includes treatment with buprenorphine. The app is downloaded directly to a patient ’s sm...Source: Psychiatr News - December 11, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: digital CBT John Torous M.D. opioid use disorder reset-O smart phone application Source Type: research

Younger Siblings of Children With ASD Have Greater Risk of ADHD and Vice VersaThis study] used a simple and transparent design to report novel data on later-born within- and cross-condition recurrence of ASD and ADHD in a way that is useful in the clinic but also motivates research to understand how and why these conditions commonly co-occur both within individuals and wi thin families,” wrote Tony Charman, Ph.D., of King’s College London and Emily Jones, Ph.D., of the University of London in anaccompanying editorial.To read more about this topic, see thePsychiatric News article “Study Examines Connections Between Psychiatric, Neurological Disorders. ”(Image: iStock/romrodink...Source: Psychiatr News - December 10, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: ADHD ASD attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder autism spectrum disorder co-occurring disorders JAMA Pediatrics risk factors siblings Source Type: research

Cigarette Smoking Associated With Psychotic Experiences in Adolescents, Study FindsSmoking tobacco is associated with psychotic experiences in adolescents, according to astudy published in theJournal of the American Academy of Child& Adolescent Psychiatry.In the study, Wikus Barkhuizen, M.Sc., of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at the University of London and colleagues analyzed smoking frequency in 3,787 adolescent pairs of twins, with a mean age of roughly 16 years. The adolescents fell into three categories: nonsmokers who had never smoked a cigarette, occasional smokers who had smoked fewer than 50 cigarettes in their lifetimes, and regular smokers who had smoked 50 or more cigaret...Source: Psychiatr News - December 7, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: anhedonia cigarettes genetics grandiosity hallucinations negative symptoms paranoia psychotic experiences twins Wikus Barkhuizen Source Type: research

Increased Risk of Mental Illness in Youth Linked to InfectionThis study found associations between any treated infection and increased risks of all treated childhood and adolescent mental disorders, with the risks differing among specific mental disorders,” wrote Ole Köhler-Forsberg, M.D., of Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark and colleagues.For the study, K öhler-Forsberg and colleagues analyzed information contained in the Danish nationwide registers on more than one million children and adolescents born in Denmark between January 1, 1995, and June 30, 2012. The researchers focused their analysis on records of infections requiring hospitalizations an d less seve...Source: Psychiatr News - December 6, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Tags: anti-infective medications hospitalization infections JAMA Psychiatry Lena Brundin mental disorders Ole K öhler-Forsberg psychotropics Viviane Labrie Source Type: research